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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27545212">Hope is a Second Chance</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/whaleiumsharkspeare/pseuds/whaleiumsharkspeare'>whaleiumsharkspeare</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Between Episodes, Canon Compliant, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Friendship, One Shot, Season/Series 03, my fics will give you cavities</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 17:26:42</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,746</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27545212</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/whaleiumsharkspeare/pseuds/whaleiumsharkspeare</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Rapunzel is a positive person and she never gives up. But it can be hard to keep up a positive outlook all the time. When she reaches a low point and starts to doubt that Cassandra can still be saved, she finds hope in an unexpected place.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>33</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Hope is a Second Chance</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey guys! This story is based on my headcanon about Varian's unspoken role in season 3. Sure he builds things when they're needed and he translated the scroll, but I really that Varian's other role that's never outright stated is as a source of hope for Rapunzel that lost friends can in fact be brought back. Set just a bit before Cassandra's Revenge because Rapunzel is a great artist and a quick painter but I'm sorry there is no way she finished that massive bedroom painting in one day. Enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Rapunzel was in her room, working on a massive painting that took up a lot of the ceiling and high walls. It basically told the story of her life, from being reunited with her parents, to the defeat of the Saporians, and everything in between. It was a beautiful and detailed painting, but Rapunzel was having a bit of trouble with a part of it. She held her paintbrush and sighed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What’s the matter, Sunshine?” called Eugene from down below. “It looks great to me.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh, I’m just...I’m struggling with this part of the painting. I don’t know, it doesn’t feel right.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Eugene looked up and frowned at the part she was working on. It was a portrait of Cassandra, posing with her loyal owl on her arm. In the painting, Cassandra was smiling, but Rapunzel simply frowned as she looked at it.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“It just seems wrong to paint her like this. It’s like, giving me false hope.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“False hope?” Eugene repeated.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“That she can be saved,” she sighed. “I love Cass, and I want her to be my friend again. But this...this just isn’t who she is anymore. It feels like I’m lying to myself.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You’re not giving up, are you?” Eugene asked, surprised. “That doesn’t sound like you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“No, Eugene. I’m not giving up. Not yet. But, it’s just hard. I want her to be saved, but sometimes it just feels impossible. She’s so lost.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Whoa, whoa. I didn’t even think that ‘impossible’ was in your vocabulary,” said Eugene. He sighed and softened his voice. “Look, Rapunzel. I understand. Sometimes I feel like that too. She betrayed you and she hurt the kingdom with the red rocks. She broke your heart. That’s not something I can easily forgive her for. But if there’s anything I’ve learned after being with you all this time, it’s that you never give up on your friends.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m not giving up yet,” said Rapunzel. She looked at the painting of Cassandra, feeling tears well up in her eyes. “But having this here is too painful for me right now.” Rapunzel quickly dipped her paintbrush into a pot of pale green paint and swiftly started to paint over the image of Cass until she could no longer see her smiling face. When it was done, there was just a blank spot on the wall where her friend used to be. Rapunzel stared at the nothingness and dropped her paintbrush back into the pot, wiping her teary eyes with her sleeve. She took a handful of her hair and jumped down from the rafters, landing on the floor.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Um, I think I’m gonna go for a walk,” she said, starting to head for the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Do you want me to come with you?” Eugene asked.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“No. No thank you, Eugene. I think I just need to be alone for a bit and clear my head.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Okay,” Eugene said softly.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Rapunzel quietly left the room while Eugene stared sadly up at the blank part of the wall and sighed. Out in the castle, Rapunzel wandered aimlessly through the halls, her head full of thoughts.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Am I just kidding myself?” she wondered. “What if Cassandra never comes back? What if she can’t be helped anymore? What if she’s too lost? I’m so terrified of losing her, but maybe it’s just something I have to accept. Maybe she doesn’t want to be my friend anymore. I don’t want to give up on her, but sometimes I feel so lost. I feel like there’s no hope. She could be plotting something terrible for all I know, or maybe I’ll just never see her again. How can I have faith when I don’t even know what she’ll do next and I can’t reach out to her? Where is the hope?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She continued walking through the castle, feeling more and more lost. She was in such a funk that even the castle servants that passed by took notice of her melancholy attitude and fell silent and crestfallen themselves. The bubbly young princess’ personality was contagious, and so was her sorrow, it seemed. After a while of walking by herself with nothing but the occasional sad squeak of Pascal in her ear and not feeling any better, Rapunzel looked up and saw that she was standing outside the palace kitchens.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Maybe I could use something sweet to cheer me up,” she thought out loud. She looked at Pascal on her shoulder. “What do you say, buddy? Maybe there’s some of those cupcakes with the pink icing.” Pascal squeaked a reply and Rapunzel pushed open the door of the kitchen and went inside. The air smelled sweet and warm when she went in, and she closed her eyes and tilted her nose up slightly to breathe in the good scents. She could hear a bit of clatter, and opened her eyes to see the source of the noise and saw a familiar face standing over the stove.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Uh, Varian?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hey, Princess!” came the young, cheerful voice. Varian looked up from the stove where he had something cooking in a pot and pushed his goggles back up into his hair.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What are you doing here?” she asked. She sniffed the air again. “Smells good.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I came to the castle today to do some research in the royal library. Thanks for giving me access, by the way,” Varian explained. “I was in there for a while, and I thought ‘nothing goes better with learning how to translate ancient languages on a scroll than hot chocolate’ so I came here to the kitchen to make some.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Rapunzel managed to crack a tiny half smile in amusement. Varian rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I know, I know. It’s a bit silly. But I just really love hot chocolate.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hey, no judgement here,” Rapunzel replied, holding up her hands. “I love chocolate. I think it’s probably the best invention in the world. No offense.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Varian laughed slightly. “I think I’d be inclined to agree.” After a moment of slightly awkward silence, Varian spoke up again. “So, uh, what are you doing here?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Rapunzel sighed. “Oh, I was just wandering around. Lost in thought, I guess. I thought I’d come see if there was anything good to eat in here.” She trailed off, looking around the room.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Varian frowned. He could tell that something was on Rapunzel’s mind and it was bothering her. He hated seeing Rapunzel look so down. Thinking fast, he looked at the pot of hot chocolate on the stove and quickly poured two mugs of it.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hey, uh, you know what? I-I made too much. There’s no way I can drink all this by myself. You want some?” he offered.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Rapunzel gave him a small smile and took the warm mug from him, and he gave her a smile in response. He picked up his own mug.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Well, I’m heading back to the library to do some more research. You can come if you like.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Rapunzel looked at Pascal as if for approval. He made a “go on” motion with his foot. She looked back up at Varian.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Okay. Let’s go. You can show me what you’ve been working on.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Varian beamed at her and led the way. They pushed open the doors of the library and went inside, where Rapunzel saw books and papers scattered all over the place, mostly stacked up on a desk in the corner. Rapunzel stared at all the notes everywhere.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Wow, you’ve really been busy,” she observed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Well, it’s not everyday you get access to the best, most exclusive books in the kingdom. Sure the little library in Old Corona and the one here on the island have good information, but the royal library has the stuff I really need if I want to crack this scroll. I want to make the most of it.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You know you can come use it anytime. You don’t have to squeeze all your research into one day.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I know that, I’ve just been really busy today,” Varian admitted. “I’ve been learning a lot. I’ve found tons of great information.” His voice got a lot quicker as he started to get more excited. “This library has books on all the languages spoken in the Seven Kingdoms, even ancient ones! It’s really helpful for trying to figure out the text on the scroll. Of course, I’m not there yet. I still have more work to do. But I’ve been in the process of creating a translation key. I think with just a couple more weeks I’ll be able to crack it.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“That’s great, Varian! You’ve really been working hard! Thank you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m just happy to help,” Varian said, sorting through his books.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“So, what else have you been up to?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Well,” Varian started, his eyes brightening. “I’ve been reading about the history of Lord Demanitus. That machine in the base of the mountains was just the tip of the iceberg of his genius. He dabbled a lot in alchemy too. Course, a lot of his alchemy practices are outdated by today’s standards, but isn’t that neat? Me, an alchemist setting up shop in the very same chamber he used for his machine to change the direction of the wind. He’s just like me, and learning about him kind of makes me feel like we’re connected, you know?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Rapunzel watched Varian become increasingly giddy the more he talked about Demanitus. She smiled at the light in his eyes and the excitement in his voice. The rest of the afternoon was spent in the library with Varian. The room was filled with the sounds of their voices talking and laughing as the day wore on. Varian showed Rapunzel all the research he was doing and she helped him by supplying her own knowledge, and even by using her hair to swing up to the top shelves and grabbing the books that Varian couldn’t reach. It was cozy and warm in the library with books and soft lighting and hot chocolate and friendship. Varian’s excitement about learning and being helpful was almost as contagious as her usual optimism, and over time she found herself starting to perk up again. How could she go on focusing on her own troubles when looking at that infectious smile with his big teeth and the light in his pale blue eyes? Varian was totally in his element, talking about the things he was passionate about and answering Rapunzel’s questions readily. She knew she had certainly picked the right person for the job of translating the scroll. He was more than happy to do it. Happy to be studying his idol, happy to be giving himself a challenge, and happy to just be useful. It meant a lot to be working with the princess after everything that had happened. Sitting there in the library with Rapunzel was a sign of the newfound trust he’d managed to rebuild, and it felt great to be trusted and to be needed. Rapunzel could feel it too, the wonderful warm sensation of trust and friendship that she knew was unwavering between the two. Watching Varian work and feeling the calm and warmth of two friends just spending an afternoon together, Rapunzel suddenly had a realization.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Of course she still had hope for Cassandra. Her friend was far from gone. There was still a chance to save her. Where was the hope? Well, <em>there</em> was the hope. Hope was right in front of her. Right there in the boy who had once been so lost, but was now right there with her. Right there in the blue eyes that once looked icy, filled with anger and sadness, but now were sparkling with life. Right there in the smile that she’d once missed and now come to be so familiar with. Right there in the laughter that was genuine and warm, no longer malicious. Hope existed in every breath of the young boy who stood before her now. And he was all the hope she needed to know that it wasn’t over, and that Cass was going to be okay. Because Varian had once been lost too, Rapunzel reminded herself. He’d once allowed anger to cloud his heart and set him on a path that had led to darkness. And for a time, she really thought she had lost her friend. But then he found the light again. He didn’t let his heart be completely shrouded in anger. He didn’t let himself be consumed by the despair and rage he’d felt. He came back to the side of goodness. He never truly lost himself. He let his genuinely good heart shine through, and he came back. Rapunzel saw the goodness in him, and she gave him a chance, and she never regretted it. Varian never gave her a reason to. The joy and relief he’d felt when Rapunzel had allowed herself to trust him again was probably the best sensation he’d ever felt in his life, right after how he’d felt when his father came back to him. A second chance. That’s all he needed. And Varian was the proof that second chances were worth it. Varian could be saved, why not Cassandra? As long as Rapunzel had Varian’s smile and his kind heart, she knew she still had hope. She felt happy and warm, and it wasn’t just because of the hot chocolate. Now feeling much happier than before, Rapunzel suddenly got up and threw her arms around Varian in a grateful hug. Surprised by the sudden gesture, Varian stood very still and shocked, tensing up just a little.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Uh, Rapunzel, what was that for?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You’re just...a really good friend, Varian. And I appreciate what all you’ve done for me. Thank you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Varian’s shocked and somewhat confused expression morphed into a smile and he hugged Rapunzel back.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You’re a really good friend too, Rapunzel. Probably the closest one I have, besides Ruddiger of course. And I’m glad to help you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After a moment, Rapunzel pulled away and let out a relieved and contented sigh, feeling her troubled emotions from before starting to melt away, replacing the heaviness in her heart with a much lighter feeling.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Well,” she said after a beat, “I should probably let you get back to work, and I have things to do too. Thanks for the hot chocolate and the nice afternoon.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You’re welcome. Thanks for the company,” he replied.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She nodded a reply and turned to leave. Varian smiled after her, feeling happy that he’d managed to cheer her up. He wasn’t sure what he’d done other than giving her a sweet drink and talking her ear off all afternoon, but he was glad he’d done his part to get her smiling again. As Rapunzel walked back through the castle, her contagious spirit was positive once again, and the people she passed by couldn’t help but wear smiles of their own. Up in her bedroom, Rapunzel stared up at her work in progress painting with newfound inspiration. She climbed up to the rafters with her hair, grabbing her paintbrush and swinging along to a new spot that could use her artistic touch. The blank spot on the wall where Cass had once been stayed vacant. She wasn’t quite ready to fill it in yet. That would have to wait until she could paint Cassandra being genuinely happy. But she wasn’t giving up hope that she would get to paint that spot someday. For now though, Rapunzel focused on a different section of the wall, and used her paintbrush to bring a different friendly face to life. A face dotted with freckles that highlighted his genuine kind smile, and goggles stuck up in the dark hair that had a funny blue streak in it. It was another portrait on the wall, just like all the other pictures of her friends and family that she’d painted into her life story. But for Rapunzel, it was more than just another smiling face. It was a symbol of hope, and a reminder that no one was ever truly lost without a way back. Varian’s heart had softened again, and he’d managed to find his way back, and she knew that Cassandra could too. One day that blank spot on the wall would be filled in. She wasn’t going to give up. And if she ever started to feel discouraged again, Rapunzel knew all she had to do was look up and see hope smiling down on her.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed! I will never stop loving and talking about Varian and Rapunzel's friendship<br/>-Whaley</p></blockquote></div></div>
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